What you need to try to avoid is being advertising for a broker but really DO know that from the second they take that listing for lease or for sale, they are out of pocket for your asset and have lost money unitl it leases or sells.

@Shawn Ackerman  Hopefully your PM gives you the deposit for the lost rent and doesn't keep it or worse, return it to the tenant.

The fact is between uber, lyft and AirBnB we may have lost about 5k SF jobs.

However, I do feel lost on where to start and need direction.

This is where the horror stories come from and money is lost.

If you can househack with a roommate you need $30k less down payment, 1500 less no llc (I wouldn’t do the other way anyway, but whatever),save  $1800 pm first month (I also wouldn’t pay that when so many will do it for a few hundred, but whatever), $3,000 less rent reserves and $1,000 less lost to vacancy.

There has been an uptick in inventory while at the same time buyers have lost their sense of urgency plus their buying power has diminished due to higher interest rates, and prices are adjusting. 

I am so lost when it comes to reading the forums and books, podcasts. 

Now, it is appraised to 160K from 200K you lost your equity and have to pay same mortgage.

I paid 40k in back tax's plus gave the owner 10k before she lost the property in a matter of days.. but she would never sign the closing docs.. so i was forced to sue for performance.. she did not have the money to give me my money back.. took 2 years and about 15k in attorneys fees but we won.. even with the judges order she would never sign the deed.. so  I had to go back in and get the judge to amend the order in a manner that title company would insure me based on his court order.. its the first time I ended up owning anything with NO deed transferring title.